PRO BASKETBALL

PRO BASKETBALL; Oakley, the Indestructible Man, Is Hurting

By CLIFTON BROWN,

Published: October 18, 1994

SAN ANTONIO, Oct. 17—
Charles Oakley said today that he has been playing on a painful, dislocated right toe that has forced him to consider surgery. But surgery does not appear to be a remedy, according to Dr. Norman Scott, the Knicks' team physician.

In a statement issued through the Knicks, Scott described Oakley's condition as "a congenital malformation of his forefoot."

"Because of that condition, one of the joints in his toe is partially dislocated," Scott said. "Surgery does not seem to be a viable alternative because if the toe were relocated with the present malformation, the dislocation would return in a short period of time after surgery."

Oakley is scheduled to see a foot specialist next week in New York, and a custom-made basketball shoe may be designed for the All-Star forward in an attempt to reduce the pain. Although Oakley has played in both preseason games and has not missed any practices, Knicks Coach Pat Riley said that Oakley's foot has been hampering him. And Oakley said today that the pain has been persistent since the first day of training camp.

Asked how long he would be sidelined if he opted for surgery, Oakley said: "I don't know. Probably a couple of months."

That sounded like a worst-case scenario, however, especially considering Oakley's durablity and pain threshold. Oakley has played in 250 consecutive regular-season games, and he was the only Knick to play in every game last season. Oakley does not like to miss practices or games, and he has taken the typical approach to this injury.

"I'm trying to play through it, unless it starts bothering me a lot to where I can't put any pressure on it," Oakley said following today's practice. "Some days it hurts. I'm trying to stay out there for the preseason so I can get my mind right for the regular season. I have to work at it, maybe get a pad or something. If I don't have surgery, it'll probably be something that will bother me all year, so it's something that I'm going to have to deal with."

Oakley was bothered by the same toe last season, but he said that this injury was more severe. He could not remember exactly how he aggravated his condition.

"Last year, it was just strained real bad," Oakley said. "Now, it's dislocated. I don't know what's going to happen. The doctors have looked at it. I'm trying to get it to a point that it doesn't bother me during the season. The first day of camp, I went to a doctor and it was sore. They took some X-rays the other day and they showed that it was dislocated. It got better over the summer. It didn't start to bother me until the first day of training camp. Now I just want to get my toe right."

Even if Oakley avoids surgery, the Knicks must hope that the injury does not diminish his performance. Not only is Oakley the team's leading rebounder, he is a superb defender, a co-captain and a locker-room leader. Whether his toe improves or not, Oakley did not sound like a player who would pace himself. He has averaged 8.5 points and 5.5 rebounds during 47 minutes of preseason action.

"I want to be on the court, I want to make things happen," Oakley said. "I can't do it on the bench. I've got the energy to play 35 or 37 minutes. I want to win a championship. That's what I'm all about.

"I played through all my injuries last year, never complained, tried to help my teammates at all times. I'm just going to try and see what happens during the preseason."

REBOUNDS

PATRICK EWING, still recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery performed July 6, will miss his third consecutive preseason game when the Knicks play the San Antonio Spurs Tuesday. PAT RILEY was uncertain when Ewing will return to action. "We have to play it by ear," Riley said. "We're all disappointed that he had to have surgery and we're disappointed as a team that he's not with us, but you have to deal with it. He has a condition that has to be taken care of first. When he's ready to go, he'll go as hard as he can go and we'll find out. But he's working as hard as he can to get himself and his body in shape, so that when he starts to run, he'll be as efficient as he can be."

Photo: Charles Oakley has been hampered lately by a dislocated toe. (Barton Silverman/The New York Times)(pg. 17)